Pouring spout



Jmfiy 117 19511 A. W. PETERS POURING SPOUT Filed Oct. 14. 1947 INVENTORQflZfre-J 14. 762 82157 Patented July 17, l951 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE POURING SPOUT Alfred w. Peters, Detroit, Mich. ApplicationOctober 14, 1947, Serial No. 779,706

1 Claim.

This invention relates to an improved pouring spout and moreparticularly to a pouring spout adapted to be detachably connected in apaper container opening such as a milk carton.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide an inexpensivepouring spout which may be detachably connected in a container openingso that the contents of the latter may be easily poured withoutspilling, dripping, or the like; to provide a pouring spout adapted tobe detachably connected in a container opening so as to effectively sealthe opening around the spout; to provide a pouring spout of theaforementioned type which can be easily inserted into a containeropening without deforming or damaging the wall of the container whichdefines the opening; to provide a pouring spout of the aforementionedtype which may be easily removed from the container when the latter isempty; and to provide an inexpensive pouring spout of the aforementionedtype which is compact in arrangement, neat in appearance, and eflicientin operation.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent from thefollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawing in whichr Figure 1 is a perspective view of thepouring spout of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a paper container with the pouring spoutof this invention mounted in the pouring opening thereof;

Fig. 3 is a vertical, sectional view, taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. land illustrating the pouring spout in its fully inserted position withina container opening;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 illustrating the pouring spout in apartially inserted position within a container opening;

Fig. 5 is an inner end view of the pouring spout taken in the directionof the arrow 5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is an outer end view of the pouring spout taken in the directionof the arrow B of Fig. 3.

The pouring spout of this invention is adapted to be detachablyconnected in a paper container opening and may be formed in any suitableshape so that the entire contents of the container may be pouredtherefrom without causing any spilling, dripping, or the like. Thepouring spout is illustrated in the drawing as being detachablyconnected to a cardboard container of the type now commercially used fordispensing milk and other fluids. As can be seen in Fig. 1, the pouringspout is generally indicated at 1 and includes an elongated body portion9, of a trapezoid shape in cross section, having a similarly shaped,longitudinally-ext'ending opening therethrough. The opening II isdefined by a top body wall I3, a bottom wall I5, and side walls I! andIS. The pouring spout I may be made of any suitable material, but ispreferably made of plastic or the like and cast as an integral piece.The opening II is preferably larger at the outer end of the spout thanat the inner end so as to permit easier moulding and so as to eliminatethe need for container air bleeds in order that the fluid in thecontainer will properly flow through the spout.

Opposed laterally projecting flanges 2| are formed on the pouring spoutside walls I1 and I9 adjacent the inner end thereof. The flanges 2|extend parallel to the inclined outer end face of the pouring spout andsubstantially the height of the side walls I! and I9. A depending flange23 is provided, inwardly of the side flanges 2|, which extendsdownwardly from the inner end of the pouring spout opening substantiallyparallel to the side flanges 2|, and below the bottom wall |5 of thebody 9. The outer face of the flange 23, which is disposed below thebottom wall I5, is parallel to and inwardly offset from the inner facesof the side flanges 2|. The amount of offset between the inner faces ofthe side flanges 2| and the outer face of the bottom flange 23 ispreferably the thickness of the container wall in which the pouringspout is to be mounted.

A laterally extending upper flange 25 is formed at the inner end of thespout body 9 and projeots upwardly above the upper body wall l3. Theouter face of the flange 25 extends substantially parallel to, and isinwardly offset from, the inner faces of the side flanges 2|. The amountof offset between these faces is again substantially equal to thethickness of the container wall in which the spout is to be connected.Extending downwardly and inwardly from the outer face of the flange 25is an arcuate cam surface 29 which forms an inclined upper lip 30 forthe inner end of the spout opening It will thus be seen that the pair offlanges 2| is angularly disposed with respect to the pair of flanges 23and 25.

The container in which the pouring spout 1 is shown as being detachablyconnected in the drawing, is generally indicated at 3| and is of animpregnated paper or cardboard construction capable of holding fluidsuch as milk. The container 3| is provided with an opening 33 in aninclined upper wall 35 thereof. The opening 33 is normally closed in aconventional manner by 3 a cover 31 which is hinged along its upper rearedge and which is detachable along the other three edges in order touncover the opening.

In order to insert the pouring spout 1 in the container opening 33, thecontainer cover 31 is first opened and swung upwardly so as to exposethe opening. The lower flange 23 of the pouring spout I is then insertedinto the container opening 33 so that the junction of the spout bottomwall i and the outer face of the flange 23 is seated on the lower edgeof the'container opening (Fig. 4). When the spout is in this position,the side flanges 2|, the upper flange 25, and the cam surface 29, aredisposed outwardly of the container wall 35. It will be noted that whenthe pouring spout is in this position, theinner end of the cam surface29 is capable of passing beneath the upper edge of the container opening33. Thus, it is possible to pivotthe spout I clockwise, from theposition illustrated in Fig. 4, so that the cam surface 29engagesztheupper edge of the container opening 33 and defleets the same, withoutcausing any permanent distortion or damage thereto, until the outer faceof the flange 25 is disposed within the contain- The spout is now in theposition illustrated in Fig. 3, wherein the outer face of the upperflange 25 engages the inner face of the container wall 35, above thecontainer opening 33, and the outer face of the lower flange 23 abutsthe inner face of the container wall 35, below the container opening 33.The spout side flanges 2| now abut the outer face of the container wall.35 on opposite sides of the opening 33 so that the spout is held inposition and cannot turn or otherwise move within the container opening33, as the offset between the outer faces of the upper and lower spoutflanges, and the innerfaces of the 'spoutside flanges is equal to thethickness of the container wall 35. The inner end of the spout i is thussealed within the container opening 33 so that when the container istilted to cause the fluid therein to flow through the spout opening l i,no liquid will escape around the spout flanges and the fluid is pouredwithout spilling, dripping, or the like.

It will, of course, be appreciated that the size of the pouring spout 1will vary in accordance with the size of the container opening in whichthe same is to fit so that the spout will be efiectively sealed and heldwithin the container wall during the pouring operation. It likewise willbe appreciated that the shape of the spout I may be varied withoutdeviating from the scope of the invention.

It will thus be seen that an efficient pouring spout 'is provided whichmay be detachably connected to any suitable container and which is neatin appearance, efficient in operation, and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture.

I; claim:

A pouring spout adapted to be inserted into an opening in acontainerwall, including a hollow body, a pair of; opposed laterally projectingflanges on said body, a second pair of opposed laterally projectingflanges on said body angularly disposed with respect to said first pairof flanges so that saidpairs'of flanges donotoverlap and are out ofinterfering relationship with respect to each other, said pairs offlanges being offset with respect to each other substantially thethickness of the'wall of said container in which said: pouring spout isadapted to be mounted so that said first pair of flanges is engageablewith the outer face of the container wall and .saidsecond pair offlanges is engageable with the inner face of the container wall so as tosecure said spout to said container and seal said opening around thespout, and a cam surface extending arcuately from one of said secondpair of flanges so as to permit said pouring spout to be easily insertedin said container opening.

ALFRED W. PETERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 940,128 Childs -1- Nov. 16, 19091,192,464 'Sarter July 25, 1 916 1,546,343 Hare July 14, 1925 2,013,361Reynolds Sept 3, 1935 2,158,502 Harrison May 16, 1939

